Corner construction



z mmz NOV. 12, 19496 J Q QQRMIE CORNER CONSTRUCTION Filed July 14, 1939 INVENTOR JOHN c. CORM/E.

w 99% dwm/ ww M gWV7 ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 12, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CORNER CONSTRUCTION Application July 14, 1939, Serial No. 284,425

3 Claims.

This invention relates to corner constructions formed of wall board, panels, sheeting or like material and particularly to constructions wherein the effect of expansion, or other relative movement of the material used in forming the corner is overcome so that wallpaper, paint or other wall covering material may be applied thereto and cracking of the wall covering material will not take place, or will be greatly diminished.

Heretofore when wall boards have been used in forming the corner of a room or the like the expansion and contraction of the wall board with changes in temperature, humidity or for any other reason have caused the edges of the wall boards to move relative to each other in such a way as to produce cracks in the corner. This difficulty may be overcome in some instances by the use of a reinforcing strip of the type described and claimed in the copending application of Harold T. Lyman, Serial Number 241,786 but under some circumstances even such a reinforcing strip does not insure the elimination of cracking or wrinkling and distortion of wall covering material.

In accordance with the present invention a construction is provided which may be used by itself or in conjunction with a reinforcing strip to prevent such displacement or relative movement of Wall boards, panels or sheet material in the corners of a room or elsewhere as will cause wallpaper, paint or other wall covering material applied thereto to present undesirable and unsightly cracks, wrinkles or deformation.

In the preferred form of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawing and hereinafter described the edges of wall boards are urged into contact with each other so as to be held in engagement upon expansion and contraction thereof or upon relative movement of the structural elements by which the wall boards are supported. The means employed for this purpose preferably are in the form of springs or other resilient members which bear against the rear face of the wall boards adjacent the edges thereof so as to urge the contacting portions of the wall boards into engagement and to hold them in contact upon relative movement.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a novel construction for corners formed of wall board, panels, sheeting or the like whereby the edges of the wall boards are held in engagement upon relative movement of the wall boards or supporting elements.

Another object of the invention is to provide a corner construction formed of wall board or the like with means yieldably urging the edges of wall boards into contact with each other.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel type of corner construction to which wall covering material may be applied and which serves to prevent the formation of cracks or wrinkles in the wall covering material upon relative movement of the wall boards forming the corner.

These and other objects and features of the invention will appear from the following description thereof in which reference is made to the figures of the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective of a portion of a corner construction embodying the present invention with parts of the construction broken away to illustrate details thereof,

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view of the construction illustrated in Fig. 1, and

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the construction of Fig. 1 when first erected.

In that form of the invention illustrated a wall board 2 is secured to a stud 4 or other structural element at a point spaced from the corner to be formed. The edge 6 of the wall board is located adjacent a stud 8 or other structural element in the corner but is not attached directly thereto so that it is free to move toward and away from the stud 8.

The wall board In which cooperates with the wall board 2 to form the corner is secured to a stud [2 or other structural element at a point spaced from the corner and has a free edge M located adjacent a stud IE or other structural element in the corner. The edge [4 of wall board 10 is rabbeted at l8 to receive the edge 5 of the wall board 2 so that on expansion of either of the wall boards the edges thereof are held in engagement and are urged toward the adjacent studs 8 and I6.

In order to urge the free edges 6 and id of the wall boards 2 and I0 respectively toward each other so that they will remain in engagement on contraction thereof, resilient means such as the springs 22 are interposed between the stud 8 and the free edge 6 of the wall board 2. In most constructions springs are also located between the stud l6 and the free edge M of the wall board 10 so that the free edge of each board is urged away from the structural elements in the corner and against the edge of the other wall board. As shown in the drawing the springs 22 are set into recesses 24 in the studs 6 and I6 and are arranged in spaced relation parallel to and adjacent the free edges of the wall boards so as to hold the edges in contact throughout the length thereof. The springs 22 are relatively stiff and serve normally to hold the edges of the wall boards slightly spaced from the adjacent surfaces of the studs 8 and I6 as indicated at 26. By using relatively stiff springs and by spacing them at numerous points adjacent the edges of the wall boards the corner is made sufficiently rigid to prevent any noticeable yielding of the wall boards when one leans against the corner while at the same time the construction is sufficiently yieldable to permit expansion and contraction or relative movement of the wall boards without separation or displacement of the edges thereof. In this way the formation of cracks in a corner formed of wall board is prevented so that wall paper, paint or other wall covering material may be applied directly thereto and will not be injured upon expansion and contraction of the wall boards.

In practice when using a type of wall board construction which is applied to the studs or structural elements in an expanded condition the subsequent shrinkage thereof is sufficient to produce the desired spaces 26 between the outer face of the wall boards and the adjacent surfaces of the studs 6 and I6 at the corners. Thereafter the wall covering material 28 may be applied to the inner surface of the wall boards and if desired a corner reinforcing strip 30 such as that of said copending application may be used beneath the wall covering material 28 in the corner to further insure against the formation of any cracks or wrinkles in the wall covering material upon relative movement of the wall boards.

When the building in which the invention is embodied is formed by assembling wholly or partially prefabricated sections to which the wall board has previously been applied, as when using the invention of the copending application of Wilson and Germond Serial No. 286,840 filed July 27, 1939, each section is formed with a frame including one or more studs such as the stud 4 which is spaced from the end of the section and an end stud such as the stud 8 at the end of the section. The wall board 2 is applied to the frame and secured to the stud 4 while the free edge 8 of the wall boards is held in contact with the adjacent surfaces of the stud 8 by means of a pressure strip 32 through which nails or other securing means 34 are driven into the stud 8 to compress the springs 22. Subsequently when the sections have been assembled the pressure strip 32 is removed to permit the springs 22 to expand and force the edge 8 of the wall boards away from the stud 8 and against wall board or other elements of another section. Ordinarily cooperating sections are formed with wall boards which interfit as shown in Fig. 3 so that on removal of the pressure strips 32 the wall boards are forced away from the end studs of each section and into contact with each other to produce the spaces 26 between the outer faces of the wall boards and the adjacent studs and allow limited relative movement of the wall boards on expansion and contraction thereof.

While a specific form of the invention has been illustrated in the drawing and described above it will be apparent that the invention is adapted for use with any desired form of wall board, sheet material or panelling and any desired form of wall covering material may be applied thereto. It will also be apparent that resilient elements other than springs may be used for urging the edges of the Wall boards into contact with each other and that the invention may be used with or without a reinforcing strip beneath the wall covering material in the corner. These and other modifications and changes may be made in the form and construction of the elements employed and therefore it should be understood that the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawing and described above is intended to be illustrative of the invention and is not intended to limit the scope thereof.

I claim:

1. A corner construction formed with structural elements located at points adjacent the corner and at points spaced from the corner, stiff, slightly flexible wall boards fixedly secured to and rigidly supported by those structural elements which are spaced from the corner and having portions overlying the structural elements adjacent the corner, said wall boards having free edges in contact with each other and movable relative to the structural elements adjacent the corner and resilient means bearing against the structural elements adjacent the corner and against said wall boards adjacent the free edges thereof to urge said edges away from the structural elements in the corner and retain said edges in engagement on relative movement of said wall boards.

2. A comer construction formed with wooden studs located at points adjacent the corner and at points spaced from the corner. stiff, slightly flexible wall boards fixedly secured to and rigidly supported by those studs spaced from the corner and having portions overlying the studs adjacent the corner, said wall boards having free edges in contact with each other and movable relative to the studs adjacent the corner, said corner studs having recesses therein and spring means located in said recesses and bearing against the wall boards adjacent the free edges thereof to urge said edges toward each other and away from the corner studs.

3. A building section comprising a frame having an element located adjacent the end of the section and other elements spaced from the end of the section, wall board applied to said frame and secured to the elements spaced from the end of the section, said wall board having a portion presenting a free edge overlying the element adjacent the end of the frame, means between the latter element and the wall board for urging the wall board away from the element adjacent the end of the frame and a pressure strip removably applied to the wall board and the element adjacent the end of the frame to hold the wall board temporarily in contact with said element against the action of said means.

JOHN C. CORMIE. 

